The Crimes of Paris by Dorothy Hoobler A True Story of Murder, Theft, and Detection

Turn-of-the-century Paris was the beating heart of a rapidly changing world. Painters, scientists, revolutionaries, poets--all were there. But so, too, were the shadows: Paris was a violent, criminal place, its sinister alleyways the haunts of Apache gangsters and its cafes the gathering places of murderous anarchists. In 1911, it fell victim to perhaps the greatest theft of all time--the taking of the Mona Lisa from the Louvre. Immediately, Alphonse Bertillon, a detective world-renowned for pioneering crime-scene investigation techniques, was called upon to solve the crime. And quickly the Paris police had a suspect: a young Spanish artist named Pablo Picasso....

Dorothy Hoobler is a historian and author of over sixty books, both fiction and nonfiction, mostly for young readers. Her and her husband are the authors of the well-loved American Family Album series, including The Japanese American Family Album, which was named a Carter G. Woodson Honor Book in 1997. The Society for School Librarians International chose their book Showa: The Era of Hirohito for a best book award in 1991, and they have been cited for excellence by the Library of Congress, the Parents' Choice Foundation, Bank Street College, the International Reading Association, the National Conference of Christians and Jews, and the New York Public Library.
Thomas Hoobler is a historian and childrens book author of over sixty books, both fiction and nonfiction, mostly for young readers. He and his wife Dorothy are the authors of the well-loved American Family Album series, including The Japanese American Family Album, which was named a Carter G. Woodson Honor Book in 1997. The Society for School Librarians International chose their book Showa: The Era of Hirohito for a best book award in 1991, and they have been cited for excellence by the Library of Congress, the Parents' Choice Foundation, Bank Street College, the International Reading Association, the National Conference of Christians and Jews, and the New York Public Library.

Unrated Critic Reviews for The Crimes of Paris

Kirkus Reviews

A serial killer who admitted to vampirism and a tailor who murdered a friend for money, chopped him up and distributed the body parts in neighborhoods across Paris are among the other unsavory individuals profiled.

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With the 100th anniversary of the theft of the Mona Lisa approaching (August 21), The Secret History of Art will look at a number of books and stories related to the most famous heist in history.Â (Full disclosure: I am nearing the completion of an extended, book-length essay on the Mona Lisa th...